1<\/p>\n
So I’m listening to this podcast episode about Doc McGhee’s 1989 Moscow Music Peace Festival and I’m getting extremely frustrated. Because the narrator was leaving out the most salient point, that Doc was doing this as a give back to the government for not going to jail on smuggling charges. He’s going on and on and I’m getting more and more frustrated and then…<\/p>\n
The podcast I’m listening to is “Wind of Change,” you know, the 2020 show that investigates whether the CIA wrote the Scorpions hit of the same name. I was fully aware of its release, but I ignored it. Because it seemed like click-bait to me, that there was no chance this had occurred.<\/p>\n
And then in response to my post on “London Falling,” Alex Skolnick e-mailed me:<\/p>\n
“I’m familiar with Patrick Radden Keefe from the fascinating Podcast series he did, Wind of Change, about the CIA and Scorpions (yes, those Scorpions, as in Rock You Like a Hurricane):\u00a0\u00a0https:\/\/crooked.com\/podcast-series\/wind-of-change\/\u00a0”<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/span>No way!<\/p>\n In case you haven’t dived in, the response I’m getting about “London Falling” is universally positive…more than that, people can’t stop talking about it.<\/p>\n Now my shrink told me the author, Patrick Radden Keefe, had written the book about the Sacklers, “Empire of Pain.” I’d had no desire to read that, because I’m more of a fiction guy and I followed the OxyContin story very closely, was it really worth spending all that time to learn only a few new things?<\/p>\n But after our session, I immediately went to Libby and reserved the Sackler book. (Which I just got by the way, but I’m working my way through a couple of books before I get to it.)<\/p>\n And then I get Alex Skolnick’s e-mail.<\/p>\n Now part of me still winced, believing the premise to be over the top, but if it was Patrick Radden Keefe and Skolnick had recommended it, I was going to check it out.<\/p>\n Now “Wind of Change” is one of those podcasts where you can see the dollar signs while you listen. This isn’t homemade stuff, there are a lot of moving parts: travel, people, research… In other words, it’s produced.<\/p>\n In truth, this type of podcast is falling out of favor, if for no reason other than these true crime shows ultimately become monochromatic and are all alike. Kind of like the streaming documentaries. At first, the facts had impact, the story was fascinating, the paragon of the genre actually being the 2003 film “Capturing the Friedmans.” But now, streamers are amplifying the smallest stories in sensationalist ways, with faux gravitas, to the point where they all run together and I’ve mostly stopped watching.<\/p>\n But I dove in and listened to this professional story that I believed was inane.<\/p>\n Now in truth, I was going to wait to finish the show before I wrote about it, and I still plan to do so, but I was so intrigued, positively shocked regarding the episode about Doc McGhee, that I had to hip you to it.<\/p>\n 2<\/p>\n Now most people who write about the music business don’t get it, because it’s not their regular beat, they don’t know the history and in addition they look down upon the industry, one reason being it’s peopled with figures like Doc McGhee.<\/p>\n The mainstream press likes their subjects to be pedigreed. To have graduated from college, maybe have a storied background. Whereas music is laden with those sans education, but even worse, it’s run by hustlers.<\/p>\n That’s what those outside the industry don’t get, how it’s run. For some reason they think they know, but it would be like me writing about medicine… I could zero in on some momentary event, but I don’t know the history, never mind not having the expertise.<\/p>\n And we see this with the Live Nation\/Ticketmaster trial… We can debate all day long whether Live Nation is a monopoly, but one thing is for sure, whatever happens, ticket prices will not go down. But parading politicians and the media keep believing there’s some nefarious plot that if uncovered will allow everybody to go to the show for fifty bucks. How could they get it so wrong? Even after the trial most people still get it wrong.<\/p>\n Which is why the music business does its best not to intersect with the legal system, the judges won’t understand it, and if you lift the rug you will find a lot of behavior that many will be uncomfortable with. The phrase is “sex, drugs and rock and roll,” and that didn’t come out of nowhere.<\/p>\n So when Patrick Radden Keefe goes on for nearly an hour about the Moscow Music Peace Festival without mentioning Doc McGhee’s brush with the law, I figured this was just another case of outsiders not knowing what was going on. I mean the fact that it was part of a government deal was all over the news back in 1989…but that’s nearly forty years ago. Like the CIA agent who doesn’t know the song “Wind of Change,” who says she doesn’t even consider music to be a fulfilling pursuit, who is keeping the record here? People like you and me. Who lived for this stuff, who sacrificed our lives for rock and roll. The ones who are pissed that it has devolved into a pop world.<\/p>\n Anyway, at the end of “I Follow the Moska,” episode 5 (of 8), Keefe interviews Deb Wilker, who talks about the story not adding up back in ’89. I mean if the government wanted to promote peace, why would they send this ragtag bunch of metal bands to Russia.<\/p>\n Voila!<\/p>\n Okay, finally, the subject was broached, Doc’s history in the drug trade. I was satisfied.<\/p>\n But then Keefe said in the next episode they were going to do a deep dive into Doc and his story.<\/p>\n WHAT???<\/p>\n 3<\/p>\n Live Nation may be a public company, streaming counts are public information, but when it comes to the music business at large, it’s one of bullying, obfuscation and intimidation, with a bit of sexism thrown into the mix… After all, isn’t that in many cases what these bands were singing about?<\/p>\n And if you’re inside, with access, you’re privy to amazing stories. You’d be surprised who scalped their own tickets. Who bootlegged merch. But if you speak this truth, you’re excommunicated. It’s the code of the road, everybody knows and nobody speaks.<\/p>\n Which is one reason why this CIA\/”Wind of Change” story could be true, but I’m saving analysis of this.<\/p>\n In other words, there is no deep dissection of the players.<\/p>\n Oh, Clive Davis has been on a mythmaking campaign for decades. But the truth is “Mr. Music” lives in his own little backwater. He had hits, undeniable hits, but most of these acts did not have careers. It was all about Top Forty, and the modern music business was built on albums and the acts that made them.<\/p>\n And how did these acts become successful?<\/p>\n How do you think these records get exposure, to this day? Do you really think there’s someone out there picking the best? Don’t make me laugh.<\/p>\n Dollars are changed, horses are traded, there’s an understanding that if you don’t come through for me now, forget me delivering in the future…<\/p>\n And most people have no idea that this is going on.<\/p>\n Despite all the press, most people don’t know the history of Michael Rapino and Irving Azoff… There’s been a lot of ink spread about David Geffen, but no one seems to have actually dealt with him on a business level, to see how he operates.<\/p>\n And that’s it. Maybe Lucian Grainge gets a little press.<\/p>\n But the rest of the players in the music business, they’re essentially faceless to the public. And if you scratch the surface…<\/p>\n 4<\/p>\n So Doc McGhee… He managed Bon Jovi and M\u00f6tley Cr\u00fce and Skid Row and even Kiss for over 25 years. How does this happen?<\/p>\n It’s not like you’ve got a problem and you call up your lawyer.<\/p>\n Either there’s a garage manager, your buddy who helps you grow, or there are interviews with players before a decision is made.<\/p>\n So who are these people?<\/p>\n If Q Prime gets a new act, if John Silva gets a new act, it’s understandable, but Doc McGhee had no portfolio, how did THIS guy sign all these bands, especially when he was starting out?<\/p>\n Call it charisma, call it storytelling, call it the ability to come right up to the line and then cross it…a special kind of person becomes a manager.<\/p>\n One who can’t work anywhere else.<\/p>\n So I’m listening to this podcast and they’re delineating all the details of the drug deals McGhee was involved in. How he introduced growers to dealers. There are stories of jail. Manuel Noriega…who uses a drug dealer’s Lear Jet to fly to D.C. for meetings with the government.<\/p>\n WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?<\/p>\n They are not dumb. You cannot win if you’re dumb. These are extremely intelligent people, they’re STREET SMART!<\/p>\n But there’s never been a thorough investigation of their identities previously. But here in this podcast about this fakokta CIA plot there’s more information about Doc McGhee than ever found previously?<\/p>\n HOW COME I DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT THIS!<\/p>\n That’s what I’m thinking as I’m listening. So much is revealed here, but no one e-mailed me about it, it was not part of the hype…<\/p>\n If this were the pre-internet era, we would know. But today? With so much product in the pipeline? Media hypes, it does not dive in. Most outlets print the press release. Actually listening, doing the work, pulling out the relevant points? Doesn’t happen.<\/p>\n I mean they’re plotting out all the deals, Doc’s involvement and then…<\/p>\n THEY GO TO HIS HOUSE!!<\/p>\n My mind is flipping. Why in the hell is Doc speaking with these people?<\/p>\n Then again, Doc’s no idiot, maybe he thinks if he doesn’t, they’ll print inaccurate information.<\/p>\n And what managers do is create the narrative and sway minds… They’re like Steve Jobs with his reality distortion field.<\/p>\n My eyes roll into the back of my head seemingly every day. Some manager e-mails me their act is the latest thing since sliced bread, a cut above the Spotify Top 50… It’s never happened.<\/p>\n Then again, when you hear from a name, like Doc McGhee, you pay attention. Because irrelevant of how good the act is, you know he’s going to push the button, use all his relationships to make the act a success. Attention is demanded.<\/p>\n Not that I actually know Doc, been around him, but I don’t think we’ve ever even spoken. But he’s out there, in his sportcoat, smiling… Intimidating he is not, at least not on the surface.<\/p>\n So, Doc gets out of the army and why does he go into dope and music…<\/p>\n BECAUSE NO ONE WILL HIRE HIM!<\/p>\n Chances are if you can get a straight job, you’re never going to make it in the music business, certainly not as an independent player like a manager. It’s their identity, their ability to get people on the same page and make things happen… These are not everyday people. And it’s clear as day in this podcast.<\/p>\n Doc starts talking about the Moscow festival, how the two shows drew 300,000 people. But the interviewer is prepared, and says the stadium only holds 75,000 and the total was half of Doc’s claim. Doc shrugs and…all managers exaggerate. My favorite used to be with record sales. If some act’s manager told me they\u2019d sold 100,000 copies of their indie record, that meant they’d sold less than 5,000. And since everybody lies, everybody exaggerates. And it’s all right here in this podcast!<\/p>\n And Doc is bobbing and weaving and…<\/p>\n They’ve already laid the groundwork, Dave Sabo talking about meeting Doc at Jon Bon Jovi’s house…<\/p>\n Great managers are oftentimes BIGGER than their acts, larger than life in their own way. And they oftentimes have more money, because they’re not tempted by excess and that’s one thing they do understand, MONEY!<\/p>\n And Doc is waxing rhapsodic, about how the CIA definitely couldn’t be involved in the Moscow Festival, because the legal case was back in 1980… Well, then the interviewer says how a judgment wasn’t entered until 1988, only one year before the Peace Festival.<\/p>\n And Doc’s laughing, saying how he did it all himself, that’s what he’s best at, making things happen, but… I’ve never heard of a manager flying to a location every two weeks for a year in advance of a show, never mind in Russia.<\/p>\n But, isn’t it common knowledge that it was a quid pro quo, that Doc did this show to keep from going to jail?<\/p>\n Doc says absolutely not.<\/p>\n But when I finish the episode an immediate Google brings me to Jon Bon Jovi admitting it. And then Doc denying it.<\/p>\n And…<\/p>\n If you want to know how a real manager operates, if you want to know the real story of Doc McGhee, you absolutely have to listen to “The Doctor Is In,” episode 7 of “Wind of Change.”<\/p>\n